Insurance volunteers get special school 'home from home' ready for new students

Volunteers from Ecclesiastical Insurance working at St Rose's school in Stroud, Gloucestershire. (Image: Picture by Clint Randall www.pixelprphotography.co.uk)

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Young people at St Rose’s in Stroud will be able to move into a ‘home from home’ in September thanks to hard-working teams of volunteers from Ecclesiastical.

So far, enthusiastic staff from the Finance and Group Risk and Compliance teams have picked up their paintbrushes to give a makeover to the bungalow for residential students aged 19 to 25, with the Facilities team set to follow in their footsteps.

Volunteers from Ecclesiastical Insurance working at St Rose's school in Stroud. (Image: Clint Randall www.pixelprphotography.co.uk)

The Gloucester-based specialist insurer has also committed to providing professional services, including risk management advice, as it steps up its support for St Rose’s, which provides education, therapy and care for children and young people aged two to 25 with physical, sensory, learning and communications difficulties.

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Deborah Rees, business manager at St Rose’s, said: “The rooms being decorated by the staff from Ecclesiastical are currently used for respite care at weekends but next year, they will be used by our full-time residential students moving on to their college education.

“This will be their home for most of the year so it will be fantastic for them to move into a really lovely, freshly-painted space that they can then personalise with their own things.”

Ecclesiastical offers all members of staff at least one volunteering day to support a cause close to their hearts. The Gloucester-based insurer also match funds all payroll giving and fundraising efforts and gives every employee a £125 personal grant. This can be given to any charity and is doubled if they also volunteer for them. Together, these initiatives raised nearly £250,000 in 2016. Over 60% of employees gave their time volunteering too.

Volunteers from Ecclesiastical Insurance working at St Rose's school in Stroud. (Image: Picture by Clint Randall www.pixelprphotography.co.uk)

Chris Bell, who volunteered at St Rose’s only three days into his new role as a compliance officer at Ecclesiastical, said: “The company’s charitable purpose was absolutely vital in my decision to come and work here. It’s fantastic to be able to take some of the pressure off a wonderful place like St Rose’s by providing a willing workforce. The money they save by us volunteering will mean they have more for equipment and activities that will improve the lives of their students.”

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Steph, 21, is one of the students who will move into a room in the renovated bungalow in September. She said: “It is great to have the Ecclesiastical team here helping us.”

Deborah Rees added: “The complex and varied needs of our students does mean there’s an awful lot of wear and tear and it can be a real challenge to keep on top of that. It’s really important to us that St Rose’s is as comfortable and homely as it can be for the children and young people who are educated here and live here during term-time.

“There’s always an immense of amount of work that needs to be done here and we’re so pleased to have support from Ecclesiastical’s army of volunteers, who are not only very hard-working but also a great deal of fun for our staff and students to interact with.”

As well as practical volunteering, Ecclesiastical staff will provide professional expertise to St Rose’s. They are currently reviewing risk registers and offering ongoing risk management advice.

Head of risk at Ecclesiastical, Debra Weekes, said: “Places like St Rose’s have a lot of regulations they need to comply with and their risks can be very varied and complex. We’re providing support that will help them ensure they are doing everything they need to do to keep their staff and students safe. This kind of professional advice can be very expensive and we’re pleased to be able to support them by providing our specialist experience and expertise.”

Financial crime and compliance officer at Ecclesiastical, Simon Arundel, added: “It’s great for our team to all pull together on a project like this for such a great cause. We’ve volunteered for Longfield Hospice and the National Birds of Prey Centre for the past two years and we all felt passionate about giving our support to St Rose’s this year.

“It’s really important to us that Ecclesiastical supports charitable giving, fundraising and volunteering. Days like today are about living the company values.”